Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott has made a formal request to President Joe Biden for a Major Disaster Declaration to help communities in Essex, Lamoille, Orange, Orleans, Rutland, Windham, and Windsor counties recover costs for repair of public infrastructure damage caused by rainfall and severe flooding on December 18 & 19, 2023. If granted, a federal Major Disaster Declaration unlocks Federal Emergency Management Agency Public Assistance Program funding to reimburse municipalities for 75% of eligible costs like debris removal, road and public building repairs, and staff overtime responding to and cleaning up after the storm.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health reported last week that COVID-19 cases again fell to their lowest level since early November and hospitalizations also were down for nearly the same timeframe, as the early winter spike has subsided. However, there were again 6 fatalities, which has been about the average since mid-December. The pandemic death total now stands at 1,124 as of February 10, 2024 (the most recent data available). Total reported deaths in January were 28, which is the highest monthly total in nearly a year, and 7 so far in February. The VDH reported February 14, 2024, that COVID-19 hospitalizations were down 10 last week to a statewide total of 28. COVID-19 activity remains in the "Low" range, according to the VDH. Reported cases last week were 210, down 44 for the week. 

Vermont Business Magazine The Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital (NVRH) Auxiliary is now accepting applications for the 2024 Scholastic Achievement Awards until 4 pm on March 14, 2024. Every year the NVRH Auxiliary recognizes five deserving college students in the hospital’s service area who are pursuing a career in healthcare. This year, for students entering college in the fall of 2024, there will be two $1,000 awards given to freshmen/first-time college students and three $2,500 awards given to students entering their third or fourth year. No award will be given to students entering their second year of college.  

Vermont Business Magazine The Age Strong VT Final Plan, which has been revised following public comment last fall, is now published and available for review on the SVCOA website homepage. This plan is a comprehensive, multi-sector roadmap designed for the next decade to transform Vermont into an age-friendly state. It has been led by the Department of Disabilities, Aging & Independent Living (DAIL) and the Department of Health, collaborating with a wide-ranging stakeholder committee. The plan sets forth ambitious objectives and strategies to enhance affordability, health and well-being, social connection, support systems, housing, transportation, community design, support for family care partners, and elder justice.  To further promote awareness and support for this vital initiative among lawmakers and the wider community, there will be a reading of the Age Strong VT Resolution at the Statehouse in Montpelier on Thursday, February 22nd. 

Vermont Business Magazine Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC) has launched a comprehensive health assessment of the communities it serves, seeking feedback through a short, anonymous survey, open to all. SVMC is encouraging residents in Bennington and Windham Counties of Vermont, eastern Rensselaer and Washington Counties of New York and northern Berkshire County in Massachusetts to take the brief survey, now available at SVMC.org. In addition to the digital survey, SVMC will be conducting in-person community outreach to collect responses. The health assessment will be open through early spring 2024.

by Devon Green, VP of Government Relations, VAHHS The House Health Care Committee passed out a bill that makes reimbursement parity for audio/visual telehealth services permanent and proposes increasing audio-only from 75 percent of an in-person visit to full parity. VAHHS appreciates the House Health Care Committee’s recognition of the same reimbursement for the same expertise and providing greater patient choice by supporting telehealth in all its forms. Also, the House Health Care Committee took up a new draft of H.766, which provides changes that VAHHS believes will go a long way to prevent provider burnout and improve care.

Vermont Business Magazine National Life Group has been recognized for exceptional culture with two industry awards that celebrate workplace wellness, with a focus on mental health: Mental Health America’s 2024 Bell Seal for Workplace Mental Health, Platinum level, and the Gold level of the 2023 Cigna Healthy Workforce Designation. National Life was among the first financial services organizations to be recognized with Mental Health America’s (MHA) Bell Seal for Workplace Mental Health in 2021. The Bell Seal recognizes employer advances in workplace mental health by awarding recognition levels of Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. Founded in 1909, Mental Health America (MHA) is the nation’s leading community-based nonprofit dedicated to addressing the overall mental health of all.

Vermont Business Magazine Rutland Regional Medical Center announced today that it has been recognized as a 2024 Outpatient Joint Replacement Excellence Award recipient by Healthgrades, the leading resource consumers use to find a hospital or doctor. This achievement along with their 5-Star in Outpatient Total Hip Replacement reflects the organization’s dedication to clinical excellence and distinguishes Rutland Regional Medical Center as one of the nation’s leading hospitals for outpatient joint replacement. Rutland Regional is also the only hospital in Vermont and New Hampshire to receive the Outpatient Joint Replacement Excellence Award distinction.

Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility Join VBSR, Tabitha Moore from Intentional Evolution Consulting, and Rachel Siegel from Toward Liberation, LLC, for a four-part training series addressing some of the core competencies of Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (JEDI). Participants will deepen their understanding of Unconscious Bias, Microaggressions, Class & Classism, and Power Dynamics, building awareness, knowledge, and skills supporting change at both the individual and collective level; from personal evolution to organizational transformation. Individual trainings are $45 for VBSR members and $65 for nonmembers. VBSR Members who register for all four trainings receive a discounted rate of $150 (savings of 20%/$30 per person). Sessions will be held virtually in March and April 2024.

Vermont Business Magazine Average gasoline prices in Vermont are $3.24 per gallon, up 4.2 cents per gallon from last week's $3.19/g. The lowest price in the state yesterday was $2.93/g while the highest was $3.39/g, a difference of 46.0 cents per gallon. The national average price of gasoline has risen 8.7 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $3.26/g today.

by Robert F. Smith, The Commons What was the bustling industrial center of Bellows Falls a hundred years ago has slowly been converted over the past two decades into an exceptional public park. An area polluted, abandoned, and neglected for most of the past century has been the focus of volunteer citizens working to convert the 8-acre former industrial site into an inviting, environmentally safe outdoor space for the community. But somewhat hidden away and accessed from the village only through the alley-like, narrow Mill Street, even some local folks don't even know that it exists. The site of the now-14-year-old Bellows Falls Historic Riverfront Park and Trail System was initially developed in the mid-1800s by the lumber and papermaking industry.

Vermont Business Magazine The U.S. Department of Commerce today announced $1.5 billion in planned direct funding for GlobalFoundries (Nasdaq: GFS) as part of the U.S. CHIPS and Science Act. This investment will enable GF to expand and create new manufacturing capacity and capabilities to securely produce more essential chips for automotive, IoT, aerospace, defense, and other vital markets. The investment includes modernization of GF’s longest continuously operated fab and the nation’s first and largest Trusted 200mm facility in Essex Junction, Vermont. The $125 million project will upgrade existing facilities, expand capacity as well as create the first U.S. facility capable of high-volume manufacturing of next-generation gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductors for use in electric vehicles, power grids, data centers, 5G and 6G smartphones and other critical technologies.